O n May 11 2020, the crypto world experienced the phenomena knows as Bitcoin halving . For those who are still a little looney-toons regarding this phenomena, here's the lowdown . Moral of the story is that, as the Bitcoin supply decreased and it's 21 million market cap slowly approached, it was widely accepted that the low supply and high demand will increase the price of the cryptocurrency back to its previous highs. Basic business right? Wrong! Source: Equity Trust Company BTC prices actually fell and after briefly holding steady, are only just rising above the 10000 USD range. Surprise eh? Well, we are not done yet. Because while the most valuable crypto coin wasn't showing it's expected gains, some other cryptocurrencies shot to outer space. There was no SpaceX rocket nor a Tesla Roadster involved. These "altcoins" bumped up in their market value thanks to the entire underlying system of cryptocurrency: investor speculation. But what exactly are these ...
Now if you Neymar fans read my previous article ( Why I Still Support Argentina), you would say 'He is a Messi fan, of course, he won't support Neymar.', let me make this very clear. Neymar is my second most favourite player in the world. After Messi of course. I'm a huge Barcelona fan, and I love the way Neymar plays. His deep jinking runs, his ridiculous jaw-dropping array of skills. Except for his new Maggi hairstyle, Neymar is a player who I admire. A Barca fan can never forget when the MSN ( Messi, Suarez, Neymar in case you lived under a cave with peanut butter in your ears), thrashed other teams, great teams, to win the treble. The trio had scored 120 + goals that season. Their collective stats make Mo Salah look like a second-tier player. So why doesn't Neymar deserve FIFA's top individual honour?
Cuz he's a serial diver, you doofus. He dived when playing for Barcelona as well, but at least the dives looked a little like a foul. Many player's dive but most actually make it look like they were fouled. Not all are gifted with an innate understanding of drama, however. Neymar really doesn't understand the concept of physics. The blatant dive against Costa Rica in yesterday's Group Stage match at the 2018 World Cup was even worse than Arjen Robben's comical jumps. And Arjen Robben is so well known for it, that even when he gets actually fouled, it is hard to judge whether he dived or not. Brazil has a worrying player in their squad. Great, but worrying.
Neymar's quality is no doubt above and beyond any average League player. The stats don't lie. Apart from Ronaldo and Messi, there is honestly no other player who can really challenge him for his ability with the ball. But you don't just desert possibly the best front trio in all-time history for extra pieces of silver. Logically, however, it is easy to understand that Neymar wanted to leave Messi's shadow. Every player wants to win the win Ballon D'Or and Neymar knows he is a lot closer than most. Salah may have scored 40+ goals this season, but you sense that sometimes he just may not be near the sheer capability of Neymar. The Kop might hate me, but then again why is Neymar consistently considered among the top 3 players in the world? It can't be because of his Maggi hairstyle, right?
But seriously, Barcelona to PSG??
If Neymar had left a team one of the top 4 EPL teams for PSG, it would make sense. PSG have more money, the league titles are more guaranteed, and in the end, they put a lot of emphasis on winning the champions league. It is moving up the footballing ladder, and if nothing it is a different challenge surely improving anyone's CV. But when you leave a club with the stature of Barcelona, there is only one other club with such an appeal and that is Real Madrid. Switching over from Barcelona to Real doesn't always go well. Just ask Luis Figo. Going to PSG was a step-down. He wanted to be the main man. And that's when the problems went from bad to worse
What he forgot is that Barca bought him to inherit Messi's obsidian throne. Messi for Barca was always going to be a hard act to follow, but Neymar had the potential. Still does. But in his desire to be the main man, he left aside with possibly the greatest player, to a side with the likes of Cavani, Di Maria, Rabiot. Good players, but nowhere near the level of Messi or Iniesta. Of course, moving to a slightly lesser team would have actually played it well for Neymar. He could now single-handed;y establish the team among Europe's elite. He could become a living legend in Paris. And he could finally get both the old men (Ronaldo, and Messi) packing and leaving the Ballon D'Or ceremony. But his on-field antics, bad at Barcelona, became worse at PSG. He fought with Cavani for penalties. Then for free kicks. He showcased his classic a**hole behaviour to several French teams as well as in the Champions League. Remember the match against Celtic.
He considered himself head and shoulders above himself, and with Ligue Un being obviously more easier than La Liga, it didn't take long for his prowess in football to get to his head. His diving notably increased and worsened at the same time. For Unai Emery, it became a classic case of Wenger's 'I didn't see it.' Now you know why Arsenal hired him. Hmmm.
Of course, football like all other sports does have a nasty side to it and sometimes you need a bit of skullduggery to win games. But not this badly. No one hangs in the hair, blandly waving their arms like some fallen bird while distinctly trying to fall and roll on the ground, and complain of incessant pain. Not with VAR around. Even the referee for the game against Costa Rica recognised it to be a signature Neymar move. The Costa Rican players were itching to beat Neymar up, but luckily the referee put Neymar in his place. And this in itself is worrying for Brazil.
Why? Because now several referees well and truly know Neymar's dirty side. So when he actually gets fouled, the referee might book him for a dive. It is the old Boy with the Sheep and the Wolf story. Where the Boy jokes around, people rush to help, but angry at him they learn to not trust him. When the Wolf really appears, the people just don't believe the Boy. And I think the Boy gets killed. Something like that. It is definitely the story where you read " And they lived happily ever after". Brazil could risk losing some important set pieces, as well as, heaven forbid, penalties when it comes to Neymar. It could cost them big time.
Which is why Neymar doesn't deserve the Ballon d'Or. Unless something bad happens, he is bound to win it as both Messi and Ronaldo are older than him, and frankly, no player is near Neymar's level
( other than the two oldie goldies). He will win the trophy based solely on footballing terms, but with his blabbing, Oscar-winning acting he would not attract the level of reverence the two oldie goldies have achieved. Other than Paris perhaps. Both have dived, but none have made it this blatant. Or achieved this Hollywood level. Coutinho is the same age as Neymar, yet he looks a lot more mature as a player. In yesterday's game, Coutinho played like a well - oiled gear in a giant machine. But Neymar let them down, hogging too much of the ball, using unnecessary touches, slowing Brazil's attack. You could blame it on the fact that he just returned from injury, but there are too many coincidences that don't make sense. Neymar might well and truly win the award, and after Messi retires he is the one I'll support, but not as a proper true player of the game, but just a statistically better player. If he wants to attain the god-level status of his former teammate, he must let go of his excessive babbling nonsense and instead focus on being a better player. A more sportsmanlike player.
Salah just destroyed the EPL for one season yet he is revered by possibly millions around the globe. Not only for his extraordinary goal haul but his down to earth, properly man-nature with a true love for the footballing spirit and the beautiful game. Neymar has been destroying defences across several leagues season after season, yet he has never hit the eulogies and praise Salah receives. Coincidence? I think not.
Cuz he's a serial diver, you doofus. He dived when playing for Barcelona as well, but at least the dives looked a little like a foul. Many player's dive but most actually make it look like they were fouled. Not all are gifted with an innate understanding of drama, however. Neymar really doesn't understand the concept of physics. The blatant dive against Costa Rica in yesterday's Group Stage match at the 2018 World Cup was even worse than Arjen Robben's comical jumps. And Arjen Robben is so well known for it, that even when he gets actually fouled, it is hard to judge whether he dived or not. Brazil has a worrying player in their squad. Great, but worrying.
Neymar's quality is no doubt above and beyond any average League player. The stats don't lie. Apart from Ronaldo and Messi, there is honestly no other player who can really challenge him for his ability with the ball. But you don't just desert possibly the best front trio in all-time history for extra pieces of silver. Logically, however, it is easy to understand that Neymar wanted to leave Messi's shadow. Every player wants to win the win Ballon D'Or and Neymar knows he is a lot closer than most. Salah may have scored 40+ goals this season, but you sense that sometimes he just may not be near the sheer capability of Neymar. The Kop might hate me, but then again why is Neymar consistently considered among the top 3 players in the world? It can't be because of his Maggi hairstyle, right?
But seriously, Barcelona to PSG??
If Neymar had left a team one of the top 4 EPL teams for PSG, it would make sense. PSG have more money, the league titles are more guaranteed, and in the end, they put a lot of emphasis on winning the champions league. It is moving up the footballing ladder, and if nothing it is a different challenge surely improving anyone's CV. But when you leave a club with the stature of Barcelona, there is only one other club with such an appeal and that is Real Madrid. Switching over from Barcelona to Real doesn't always go well. Just ask Luis Figo. Going to PSG was a step-down. He wanted to be the main man. And that's when the problems went from bad to worse
What he forgot is that Barca bought him to inherit Messi's obsidian throne. Messi for Barca was always going to be a hard act to follow, but Neymar had the potential. Still does. But in his desire to be the main man, he left aside with possibly the greatest player, to a side with the likes of Cavani, Di Maria, Rabiot. Good players, but nowhere near the level of Messi or Iniesta. Of course, moving to a slightly lesser team would have actually played it well for Neymar. He could now single-handed;y establish the team among Europe's elite. He could become a living legend in Paris. And he could finally get both the old men (Ronaldo, and Messi) packing and leaving the Ballon D'Or ceremony. But his on-field antics, bad at Barcelona, became worse at PSG. He fought with Cavani for penalties. Then for free kicks. He showcased his classic a**hole behaviour to several French teams as well as in the Champions League. Remember the match against Celtic.
He considered himself head and shoulders above himself, and with Ligue Un being obviously more easier than La Liga, it didn't take long for his prowess in football to get to his head. His diving notably increased and worsened at the same time. For Unai Emery, it became a classic case of Wenger's 'I didn't see it.' Now you know why Arsenal hired him. Hmmm.
Of course, football like all other sports does have a nasty side to it and sometimes you need a bit of skullduggery to win games. But not this badly. No one hangs in the hair, blandly waving their arms like some fallen bird while distinctly trying to fall and roll on the ground, and complain of incessant pain. Not with VAR around. Even the referee for the game against Costa Rica recognised it to be a signature Neymar move. The Costa Rican players were itching to beat Neymar up, but luckily the referee put Neymar in his place. And this in itself is worrying for Brazil.
Why? Because now several referees well and truly know Neymar's dirty side. So when he actually gets fouled, the referee might book him for a dive. It is the old Boy with the Sheep and the Wolf story. Where the Boy jokes around, people rush to help, but angry at him they learn to not trust him. When the Wolf really appears, the people just don't believe the Boy. And I think the Boy gets killed. Something like that. It is definitely the story where you read " And they lived happily ever after". Brazil could risk losing some important set pieces, as well as, heaven forbid, penalties when it comes to Neymar. It could cost them big time.
Which is why Neymar doesn't deserve the Ballon d'Or. Unless something bad happens, he is bound to win it as both Messi and Ronaldo are older than him, and frankly, no player is near Neymar's level
( other than the two oldie goldies). He will win the trophy based solely on footballing terms, but with his blabbing, Oscar-winning acting he would not attract the level of reverence the two oldie goldies have achieved. Other than Paris perhaps. Both have dived, but none have made it this blatant. Or achieved this Hollywood level. Coutinho is the same age as Neymar, yet he looks a lot more mature as a player. In yesterday's game, Coutinho played like a well - oiled gear in a giant machine. But Neymar let them down, hogging too much of the ball, using unnecessary touches, slowing Brazil's attack. You could blame it on the fact that he just returned from injury, but there are too many coincidences that don't make sense. Neymar might well and truly win the award, and after Messi retires he is the one I'll support, but not as a proper true player of the game, but just a statistically better player. If he wants to attain the god-level status of his former teammate, he must let go of his excessive babbling nonsense and instead focus on being a better player. A more sportsmanlike player.
Salah just destroyed the EPL for one season yet he is revered by possibly millions around the globe. Not only for his extraordinary goal haul but his down to earth, properly man-nature with a true love for the footballing spirit and the beautiful game. Neymar has been destroying defences across several leagues season after season, yet he has never hit the eulogies and praise Salah receives. Coincidence? I think not.
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